The George and Dragon, West Haddlesey

We visited the george and dragon recently, for the first time in about 3 years, having had a disappointing first visit a few years ago (see my other review) We ended up here by accident having been unable to get food due to overbooking at another local pub. there was plenty of room for us to be seated and the waiter/helper was very pleasant, i get the feeling that this is not really the food pub of the area having been turned away from somewhere that was completely full to find ourselves only a mile or so away where only one other group of four were eating at sunday lunch time, there was plenty on offer but it would appear the food is mainly cooked from frozen, bought in, and pre-prepared, it was certainly edible and this kind of ethos definitely works for the chain pubs of this world, but nothing to write home about, the starter options were also very unusual for standard british fare. the bar area was boisterous with drinkers and the bar seems well stocked with ale, although not any i was particularly familiar with, i had a pint of the house special ale, which is apparently only available in one other pub in the world... it was ok but very lively, which probably explains its limited success :) i would hate to say anything negative about the george and dragon, it is clean and tidy, the staff were polite and the weather was lovely, not sure how much control they have over that.. if you are into the local ales of the area it seems to be the place to be, they sell a similar but more limited selection the wheatsheaf in burn. If its food you need then you would probably be better of searching elsewhere for something more authentic

17 Apr 2010 00:47

The Wheatsheaf Inn, Burn

i will always love this pub, if you are in the local area its a must visit a british pub at its best

17 Apr 2010 00:22

The Jug Inn, Chapel Haddlesey

well, looking at the comments its over 3 years since i last visited the jug, back then it was quiet, there were only 1 or two real ales (volume brands) and the food was okay. What a surprise i got on returning recently. There are now three real ales on regular rotation with a regular that according to their knowledgable beer expert, is usually Black sheep, but they are experimenting with some real classics, the Tetley's Mild is outstanding and the rotated ales and a quick scan of the ales board shows that there is some really good ale passing through this pub. The real change here though is the food, some creative fusion dishes and although probably not the cheapest in this area was outstanding, much busier than i remember as well with two likeable, charming and friendly hosts. we were so impressed that we turned up for Sunday lunch the following weekend only to be disappointed that we could get a table for the next four hours. Make sure you book for sunday lunch, it was packed to the rafters when we went. Very nice place that makes us think we may be venturing over this way more often

17 Apr 2010 00:20